1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a character and figure input-output apparatus suitable for use in a personal computer, a word processor, a graphic work station or the like, and in particular to a character and figure processing apparatus for outputting information handwritten and input by an on-line or the result of the information having been data-processed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As a character and figure input-output apparatus applied to a personal computer, a word processor or the like, one comprising a combination of a keyboard input as an input device and a CRT as a display output device has heretofore been popular.
However, in an apparatus of this type, when a Chinese sentence is to be input, an inconvenience is sometimes experienced in inputting it by a keyboard. That is, where a key is allotted to a Chinese character, the number of keys exceeds 2,000 and even if a necessary number of keys are arranged, it requires much time for a beginner to look for a key position corresponding to a Chinese character to be input, and this leads to low operability.
Also, use has widely been made of apparatuses in which an input is effected in kana or Roman letters from a keyboard by the use of kana-Chinese character interchange means or the like, whereafter the kana or Roman letters are converted into a Chinese character corresponding thereto, but typewriters are originally unfamiliar to many Japanese and moreover, a typewriter requires its operator to effect several typing operations including vowels and consonants in inputting a Chinese character. The pronunciation of any Chinese character is variable and, when a pronunciation is to be converted into a Chinese character, a number of Chinese characters are usually proposed and a Chinese character displayed as a first proposed character is not always a desired Chinese character and therefore, there often occurs a situation in which selection must be made from among several proposed characters and thus, the number of typing operations is increased.